Zelaznik: 'TUF: Brazil' to continue on, tryouts to be announced shortly

BELO HORIZONTE, Brazil – Despite reports the reality show may be dead, UFC Director of International Development Marshall Zelaznik said “The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil” is well on its way to a third season.

In fact, he said, tryouts will be announced shortly for the latest Brazilian edition of the UFC’s long-running reality series.

“I’ve seen some of the stories out there, but let’s be clear about something: We’re in the middle of a four-year deal with Rede Globo,” he told MMAjunkie.com. “The commitment in that deal is that we will deliver four seasons of ‘The Ultimate Fighter.’ We’ve done one. We are in pre-production on the second season under this new deal of ‘The Ultimate Fighter.’ So the UFC and Globo has a very strong partnership.

“‘The Ultimate Fighter’ is here, it’s a great platform for the new up-and-coming Brazilian fighters, and we’re excited and our business continue to grow.”

Zelaznik made the comments after Wednesday’s UFC Fight Night 28 event at Mineirinho Arena in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil. The mid-week card, which was light on talent aside from the top three bouts, drew just 5,126 attendees. That was a sharp decline from the organization’s first Belo Horizonte event, which drew 16,643 for a pay-per-view show, UFC 147.

Zelaznik said the company wasn’t concerned by the event’s ticket sales, especially with the modified seating configuration that curtained off the upper levels. However, with the UFC making a commitment to Wednesday timeslots for the UFC Fight Night series, the smaller crowds could become the norm in international markets like Brazil.

“There’s no denying that Wednesday nights will be a challenge,” Zelaznik said. “It’s not Saturday night fights, but they’re perfect for television. They’re great for fans that can’t commit every weekend that the UFC has an event, so we’re excited to have them in Wednesdays. The fans showed up tonight. There weren’t really many empty seats in the house. I think we were left with about 200 tickets that didn’t sell for tonight, so we’re ecstatic with the event.”

As with some of the recent live events in the country, “TUF: Brazil 2″ also saw a decline in interest earlier this year. It prompted a report that the show wouldn’t be renewed due to sagging ratings, though officials quickly denied the report.

On Wednesday, Zelaznik assured that Brazil remains a top priority for the UFC.

“We’re investing in this market,” he said. “We’re opening an office in Sao Paulo. We’re committing to more and more events. So we believe in this market, and this market is paying dividends for us.”

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